Police officers are more used to asking the questions than answering them, but there was a definite role reversal on show when Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, visited St Francis de Sales School in Tottenham on Tuesday.

Children from the School Council interviewed the commissioner, finding out everything from what qualities he feels make a good police officer to how he feels the Met can attract more black and Asian officers to the force.

Asked whether he liked being the Met’s Commissioner, Sir Bernard said: “I love it. I get to ride police horses when I want to, I go up in a helicopter when I want to, and I really like problem solving.”

Year 6 school councillor Benedict wanted to know if Sir Bernard thought the police will ever have a commissioner from a BME background.

“I’m not sure if it will be the person who replaces me, or the person after that, but I think there will be a black or minority commissioner in a fairly short period of time,” Sir Bernard said, before adding that he felt there was a good chance that his immediate successor could be the Met’s first ever female commissioner.

Dr Lane, the Headteacher of St Francis de Sales School, said, “I was very pleased to have Britain’s most senior police officer come to our school and be interviewed by our pupils. This initiative demonstrates that the Metropolitan Police and local schools take seriously our roles to develop and maintain a close-knit community in Tottenham."

Eight year-old Louise in Year 4 said she was “really excited” to interview the commissioner as she’s “never met a real police officer before.”

“I want to be a police officer in the future now, so I know that I will have to be brave and work hard in school to do that,” Louise said.

Clearly impressed by the School Council’s linguistic skills, in which pupils speak languages including French, Spanish, Polish and Ghanaian, Sir Bernard admitted he was trying to learn German but finding it difficult.

He left with some advice for the school’s budding police recruits: “Work hard at school, support your friends and classmates and listen to what your teachers tell you.”